Site 12: Osprey Pole

"Ye marshes, how candid and simple and nothing -- withholding and free,

Ye publish yourselves to sky and offer yourselves to the sea!

Tolerant plants, that suffer the sea and the rains and the sun.

Ye spread and span like the catholic man who hath mightily won

God out of knowledge and good out of infinite pain."

Sidney Lanier - The Marshes of Glynn

Site 12 sits at the entrance to a recently-cleared walk through the uplands zone of the coastal salt marsh. In the late spring and early summer, wild leek grows here plentifully. The trail moves through high tide bush stands and past bushes of bayberry. If you looks closely, you can see the trail is lined by tall yukka plants, yellow golden rod, and the pale pink flowers of Milkweed. The Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) provides nectar for the Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus), which in turn helps to pollinate the flowers. Once Milkweed has been pollinated, it produces large pods that pop and release fluffy seeds to spread on the wind.

This location is also the closest the trail comes to the occupied osprey pole. At times, you can hear the osprey crying above and watch them dive into the waters nearby for fish. If you watch closely, you will see the nesting pair bring their catch back to the nest for offspring in the spring and summer. A great area for bird watchers to see the wildlife nearby in action.